View of the Harmandir Sahib in the Golden Temple in Amritsar at night

This is another photo of the Golden Temple at night, when you take the photo using a camera at a low shutter speed, and opening the aperture as much as possible. It is just not enough to take a photo at these speeds, since the exposure you will get is very low. Instead, you need to use a tripod, or prop the camera on a wall where the camera does not shake.

Much darker photo of the Golden Temple at night, with the exposure not being enough

This is a photo of the Golden Temple at night. In contrast to the previous photos, where the exposure levels were as high as 20 seconds, this was a photo where the camera was hand held, and the exposure levels would not be enough, no matter what. You need to use a tripod, or put the camera down to get the beautifully lighted photos as seen in the previous photos.

A more distant view of the beautifully lighted Golden Temple at the far end of the sarovar in Amritsar

A view of the Golden Temple at night (beautifully lighted up, as visible from the far end of the sarovar surrounding it). The shimmer of the lights of the structure looks beautiful, when seen in the black water of the sarovar. In addition, in this photo, you get to see a lot more of the surrounding structures.

Close up view of the Golden Temple, the sarovar surrounding it, and the causeway with devotees

A photo of the Golden Temple at night, with a closer view of the central lighted Harmandir Sahib and the causeway over the sarovar (linking it to the outer perimeter). The lights, when combined with the golden color of the structure, look incredibly beautiful. The shimmer of the lights on the water looks incredibly beautiful.

The Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar at night, with lights reflecting in the holy sarovar surrounding it

A view of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, in the middle of the sarovar (water tank) surrounding it. There is a causeway linking the temple middle with the outside of the sarovar, and this causeway is used by the devotees to pray at the shrine (and at the Guru Granth Sahib) located at the center. At night, the reflection of the light gives an overall beautiful presence.

View of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, located in the middle of the Holy Sarovar

This is another view of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, at night, with lights all over. The reflection of the lights in the sarovar makes the photo look incredible. I did not have a tripod, so kept the camera on the ground, used the strap of the camera under the lens for elevation, and then set the camera with a delay in clicking, and then set the photo for around a 20 second exposure.

View of the Harmandir Sahib and the causeway along with sarovar in the Golden Temple at night

The previous set of photos have all shown the Harmandir Sahib and the causeway from one side. In this view, you are able to see the view from the other side of the causeway. It really does not look too different, but the surrounding buildings are different, and hence in this case, you are able to see a well lighted building right behind the Harmandir Sahib.

View of the Harmandir Sahib and the causeway with devotees inside the Golden Temple

In the previous photo, there was a view of the causeway leading to the Harmandir Sahib, thronged with devotees. In this photo, you can see devotees along with a view of the beautiful golden structure situated right in the middle of the sarovar (pond). The lights of the complex are reflected in the waters of the sarovar, and in the background, there is the clock tower.

View of the devotees in the causeay leading to the Harmandir Sahib in the Golden Temple

There is a causeway leading to the Harmandir Sahib in the middle of the sarovar inside the Golden Temple complex. It is around 9 PM at night, and yet the causeway (passing through the water) is still thronged with devotees queuing for a glimpse of the holy Guru Granth Sahib.

View of the Golden Temple in Amitsar from an angle, along with a view of minarets in the back

A view of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, as seen from an angle. In this photo, you are able to see the Golden Temple at night, from an angle at the farthest end of the sarovar. In this photo, you can also see the Minars of the Ramgarhia Bunga, with a huge view of the water of the sarovar. The reflection of the lighted Golden Temple in the water looks beautiful.

The Golden Temple at night, located in the middle of the Holy Sarovar in Amritsar

A photo of the beautiful Golden Temple in Amritsar, the holiest site of Sikhism. You can see the beautiful golden color of the Harmindar Sahib located in the midst of the holy tank (called the sarovar). At night, you can see a reflection of the fully lighted temple in the midst of the sarovar, with the water looking more black than usual.

A close up photo of the Golden Temple in Amritsar at night, with light reflecting from the water

The Golden Temple is one of the most holy religious places in the world, and the center of the Sikh Religion. The original structure was built around 1574, with construction being enhanced during the times of the 4th and 5th Gurus.
This is a photo taken during the night. I did not use a tripod, but kept the camera at the side of the sarovar, and set a time period of around 15 seconds to take this photo (setting a delay of around 10 seconds first to remove any shake).

Person on a parasail just about to land in the water off the Lakshadweep islands

After an exciting few minutes, the fun is over. After being pulled by a boat to start floating in the air (tied to a parasail), gravity takes over and the person has to come down to earth. In another few seconds, the person will fall in the water, and the boat will be there to pick them up.

Floating in a parasail over the beautiful green water, pulled by a boat

Imagine how nice it would be. You are floating high above the water, over coral laden water, with the boat having taken you high in the air, slowly starting to descend when you reach the top height. It is real fun, and this is exactly how this person would have been feeling, after doing this para-sailing on the beaches of the Lakshadweep islands.

A person starting to fly off the ground in a parasail in the Lakshadweep islands

This promised to be real fun; unfortunately because of the number of people wanting to do this, you needed to queue up early in the morning to get a chance. Getting up early was not part of the plan, so I decided to just go and watch people when they were doing this, and it looked like so much fun.

Coconut or palm trees and white cottages in Lakshadweep, with hedges on the ground

The Lakshadweep are a set of Indian islands in the Arabian Sea, located at around a day's ship cruise time from the Indian coast. This is the scene from one of the islands, where you can see trees and a lot of greenery along with small white cottages. There were a small number of cottages, making for a nice vacation.

The greenery at the side of the waterway in Alleppey, Kerala, India

Think of relaxation, think of a peaceful relaxing journey in the midst of lush greenery, with you sitting on a boat making its way through calm water. This was the experience that we enjoyed in the waterways of Alleppey, in Kerala, India.

A boat carrying a number of people in the waterways near Alleppey, Kerala

The waterways of Alleppey are the more reliable means of transport, given their wide-spread availability. In this photo, you can see a double decker ferry type of boat carrying a number of people, with greenery on both sides of the waterway.

The side of a houseboat on the waterways in Alleppey in Kerala, India

This is a photo of the side of a houseboat plying on the waterways near Alleppey. The houseboats are supposed to be environmentally friendly, with the sides made from the various products created from coconut. The sides and window panes are made from the byproducts of the coconut tree. We were at some speed, so the splashes can be seen in the water drops at the front end of the photo.

People on the side of the canal with a lot of greenery in the town of Alleppey in Kerala, India

As I have mentioned before, the waterways in Alleppey are one of the primary means of transport in Alleppey because of their reach and network. They are much more dominant than roadways. In this case, you can see so many people at the side of the waterways, who use this as the dominant means of transporting goods and people.

The greenery to the side of the canal in Kerala, near the town of Alleppey

While we were roaming around in a speedboat through the waterways of the town of Alleppey, we could only watch and admire the view around us. To the side of the waterway, there was a lot of greenery, with trees to the side and a lot of green plants.

The powerboat running through a weed infested waterway in Alleppey

We were wandering through the waterways around Alleppey, with trees on both sides and the waterway running through many areas. The one problem that we faced was that the powerboat was running through weed infested waters, and the boat pilot was worried about the boat engine getting caught up in these weeds.

View of the Lake View Palace Resort in Alleppey as we leave by houseboat

The Lake Palace Resort in Alleppey (Kerala, India) is located on the shores of the large Vembanadu Lake, and is a fairly beautiful location to come and spend some leisure time. We had come in by boat to spend around 3 days there, and after spending the New Year there, we were on our way to proceed to a houseboat. This is an image of the place from our houseboat after we were leaving.

A very weed covered stretch of the waterways in Alleppey

This section of the waterways seems very weed infested, but if you look closely, this is actually close to a large habitation of people. The canal is bounded by cement and stone banks, and the trees on either side are specifically grown for cultivation. And you can see boats (multiple ones) in the water straight ahead.

Man paddling his small boat along the waterway in Alleppey, Kerala

There are several parts of Kerala (a state in the south of India) that have large sections of waterways (used by the local people for transport of self and goods). In these regions, especially near places such as Alleppey, people depend on the water for all their movement, such as this man paddling this small boat across these weed covered waterways.

View of the green setting inside the Lake View Resort in Alleppey, Kerala

This is another view of the Lake View Resort in Alleppey, Kerala, with the water inside the resort also having the same brackish water as is common in the waterways in the town. The resort uses this to its advantage, fishing for fish using these large nets, and also growing beautiful flowers on the borders of the property.

Comfortable pool chairs next to the swimming pool at resort in Alleppey

This can be truly called a great vacation. In the middle of December, you have a place that is nice, and warm, and where there is this attractive swimming pool, set in the middle of greenery. Just to invite people in, there are these balls in the water, seemingly inviting vacationers to come and play in the pool.